Hi all, Can anyone recommend a controller that's GRBL compatible that can drive a LEAD1515 (with two Y steppers) with a rotary stepper as well? The controllers I've seen (BlackBox or XPro V5) can only control 4 steppers. Thanks, Allistar
GRBL can not run four different axis at once. So if you want a rotary, you disconnect either the X or Y and use that driver to operate the rotary. This was the primary reason I built a stand alone CNC lathe. It is not difficult to do, you just need to change your steps/mm each time you switch. I would run it along the Y axis so only the X would need to be disconnected and the rotary axis could be longer.
You swop the rotary into X or Y, and use Wrapping (video below) Super easy to connect/disconnect thanks to Xtension Connectors
Look into grblHAL and grbl_Esp32. Once you graduate past three basic axes, there's a lot less hand-holding and you'll have to work on your own electronics hardware. Luckily, doesn't seem particularly difficult with either of those. bCNC seems to have become a dedicated grblHAL sender, which is interesting. Getting 4-axis jobs out of CAM is another matter, though, that's the big thing to look into.
Thanks, that's helpful. I'll use the driver of the X stepper to control the rotary. When I build it I'll get an extra stepper motor cable so changing it is easy.
I use GRBL on my machine. I have two Y axis steppers. I have both drivers connected to the same Step and Direction pins on the Nano3. It works for me with no problems. Edit: Just dawned on me that you are talking about an integrated system where as I use separate drivers and Nano3. This handicap of GRBL made me go with the separate system in the first place.
Thanks for the replies. The only reason I'm suggesting GRBL is because that seems to be the default for the OpenBuilds hardware and the XPRO V5. I can build my own drivers to control 5 steppers at once (my current CNC uses HobbyCNC drivers and LinuxCNC). For the low number of times I'll use a rotary axis I'll stick with 4 drivers and I'll switch the stepper's plug manually (and change the appropriate config).
